Healthy Eating is the Foundation of a Healthy Lifestyle

Healthy Eating for a Healthy Life

Most of us realize that a healthy diet is crucial towards leading a healthy lifestyle. The food we consume is the foundation of our health and well being.  This includes the vitamins and nutrients we eat our body needs as well as the food we eat that is not health promoting.

While it is easy to understand the importance of a healthy diet maintaining one on a daily basis often proves more difficult.  In order to eat healthy everyday it is important to understand nutrition basics including; what types of nutrients and types of food make up a healthy diet, what portions of different food types are required, and how we can use nutrition and diet to achieve individual goals.

Food Types

All the food we eat consists of 4 basic units of food types including carbohydrates, proteins, fats and vitamins.  These food types can all be broken down further into more specific units which our bodies use for various purposes.  By understanding the role of food and controlling the amount and type of food eaten you can significantly impact your body and lifestyle.

Food Pyramid

The amount of food we eat is just as important as the type of food we eat.  Our body requires different amounts of the various food types.  While all individuals may vary in the specific amounts and proportions of food needed experts have developed a general framework for a healthy diet plan known as the Food Pyramid.  The Food Pyramid utilizes the basic food groups and arranges them in a pyramid structure to indicate how much of each food type is needed for a balanced diet. By familiarizing yourself with the Food Pyramid you can ensure your diet plan is providing the right food groups in the correct quantities.

Calories

Many people have come to dread the term calorie as it is often used to describe rigid self denying diets as “calorie counting”. The term calorie is a unit of measurement and represents energy.  The “calorie” content in food should not scare you but inform. Understanding calories and food can help you make better nutrition decisions, allowing you to eat the optimal foods to fuel your lifestyle. Calorie Counting should not be a scary word, simply the process by which you track your food intake.  After you track your caloric intake you will be able to understand the calories needed to lose weight or achieve whatever health goal you are striving for.